Hello, I am new to this forum and it is my first post. I am about begin a basic restoration of a 1971 R60/5. This is my father-in-laws and he bought it new. He actually took it on his honeymoon. The bike hasn't seen the light of day since 1984 and it is all original. It appears to be in good shape and the engine is not seized. I want to get it going and surprise him for Christmas. I am not new to vintage motorcycles and have restored several old Honda's however I have no experience with BMW's. What I really want to know is what are some unique things that I should be aware of when it comes to working on old BMW's? I am going to do it in two stages. First I just want to make sure it will run before I invest a lot of money into it. Then I would work on making it road worthy. "Phase I" will be getting a new battery, rebuild carbs, clean tank, new fuel lines, spark plugs, points and an oil change. Anything that I missing to gust see if it will run? Once I have proven it will run I will get new tires and grease, lube, clean, polish and adjust everything. Am I forgetting anything? What are the best sources for parts? Thanks for your help.

You will certainly find helpful people here, and among the first things they'll advise is to do what you have in mind. But don't go anywhere far with the old tires; they're dangerous even if they look to have lots of tread.

You might also want to join the Airheads Beemer Club, which involves owners of BMWs up to 1995. Its organized by state, and will get you on a statewide discussion list so you can connect with others in Michigan. Dues are low, $25 per year, and members meet up for tech days to work on their bikes, to learn about how to work on their bikes, to swap stories and socialize. There's a monthly publication which makes for light reading. Google the club name and you'll reach their website.

More useful for those of us working on our own bikes, though, is a similarly named but unaffiliated message group that includes many of the same people, and which you can subscribe to by either of two methods:

There are a bunch of very knowledgeable and helpful people on this list who are generous with advice and help in solving problems with old airheads, some of them quite obscure and vexatious--the problems that is, not the people. A number of them make their livings working on old BMWs, which makes their generosity even more notable.

As for parts, there are a number of places you can go. In the US, there's Benchmark Works in Mississippi that specializes in BMW parts up to about 1969 but also after, Max BWW in Connecticut and Massachussets which lists parts for your bike's vintage on its website in a handy and helpful way according to model or VIN, Hucky's Spare Parts in Florida which carries a limited range of new and used parts at attractive prices, and Tom Cutter's Rubber Chicken Racing Garage in New Jersey. Cutter carries the whole range of available parts and if you're buying in the US is the man to deal with, given his knowledge and his generosity in sharing it. He's also where to go if you need major engine or transmission work--he'll tell you how to pack and ship such items--though there are also a couple of others who participate on that list as well.

In terms of pricing, though, given the current depressed state of the euro, you can't do better if you're making a substantial parts order than Ulis Motorradladen in Frankfurt, Germany. They have an extensive catalogue of parts online, in English, and are quick to respond to email inquiries in English. They ship whatever quantity you order for 40.30 euros to the US; that's about $43. In my experience packages arrive from Germany within 10 days or so.

All good advice from Lincoln, but Tom Cutter's shop is located in Yardley, on the PA side of the Delaware River, the last I-95 exit before you get to New Jersey when approaching from the south/west. I don't know how attached Mr. Cutter is to being a Pennsylvanian, rather than being from Joisey,